THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 21, 1995 TAG: 9507200135
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: The Road Warrior
LENGTH: Long : 116 lines
Most everyone older than 20 has probably done business with the Mustang Trail branch of the Department of Motor Vehicles. Afterall, the place has been around since 1971.
Even Road, at the tender age of 18 (Road didn't get a license at 16 because Road's parents feared for their lives when Road was behind the wheel), took the written and behind-the-wheel test for a driver's license at the small DMV branch. During those years (many, many, many years ago) the place was always hot and overcrowded. Lines sometimes snaked out the door and all too often, the soda machine in the lobby was broken.
DMV sure has come a long way since then. In 1988, they opened a branch on Buckner Boulevard in the Princess Anne area that sports a color-coordinated decor and plenty of open, airy space for waiting and with only one draw-back - there's no soda machine.
Now, there are plans to open a customer service location in Hilltop.
A groundbreaking will be held today for the new branch office at 1710 Donna Blvd., near the corner of First Colonial Road.
The new office will feature 10,400 square feet with 16 teller windows, a drive-through window, two photo stations and 130 customer parking spaces.
The branch also will have six Knowledge Automated Testing System (KATS) machines for driver exams. The machines electronically test candidates on their driving knowledge for a driver's license.
No one knows for sure if this new branch will house a soda machine, but construction should start any day and be completed in early 1996.
SNARLS OF THE WEEK
The following people called Road's INFOLINE number with their complaints.
Peter Gonzalez, No Address Given. I heard a couple of people at work tell me that the Virginia Beach Police cannot pull you over for not wearing a seatbelt if that's the only reason for stopping you. I was wondering if you could let everybody know what the law is and what we need to do - whether we need to have them on at all times or just worry about it when we're doing something else wrong? Thanks a lot.
RW: Virginia's seatbelt law is still considered ``secondary,'' which means that an officer can only ticket you for not wearing a seatbelt (youth or adult) if you've been pulled over for another offense.
However, when it comes to child safety seats, it's a different story. Mike Carey with the Virginia Beach Police Department says that an officer can and will pull you over and ticket you if they notice your child is not restrained in a child safety seat. And no, for the children's safety, you don't have to commit another offense in conjunction to be pulled and ticketed for not belting the youngsters in.
Dawn, No Address Given. Sometimes I see a truck or a car whose tailpipe is emitting lots and lots of smoke and I'm always wondering if it's actually illegal to do that. Can someone give them a ticket? Thanks.
RW: According to state and local police in Hampton Roads, there are no emission safety checks done on cars, even when they get their yearly inspection.
However, inspectors are told to look for holes in the tailpipe or other obvious defects and they can refuse to pass a car for inspection if such problems aren't fixed.
And yes, an officer can and will stop you if your tailpipe's letting out a cloud of smoke. You can be warned or ticketed for having an improper or defective exhaust system.
Barbara, Rosemont Forest. In response to ``God is not a garbage man,'' well I'm one of those who drives a pick-up truck but everybody else seems to think the back of my pick-up is a garbage can and if I don't look in the back of it before I drive off, the stuff flies out on the interstate.
As soon as people learn to stop throwing stuff in the back of other people's pick-up trucks because they can't walk 20 or 30 extra feet to a trash can, a lot of that stuff might stop.
I've found banana peels, McDonald's wrappers and other junk, and I don't throw that stuff in the back of my truck.
RW: There are always two sides to every story, ain't that right, Barbara?
Lynn Snyder, Kings Grant. I agree with the letter by Mac Simmons that truck drivers should beware of things flying out of their pickup beds.
I was traveling on Virginia Beach Boulevard, just past Rosemont Road, the other day when a piece of plumber's pipe flew up and hit my car and bounced in the window without giving me a scratch. Evidently my guardian angel was watching.
Please, tell truck drivers not to let loose things fly around in their trucks. Thank you very much.
RW: What an ordeal. When you're traveling 45 mph, a simple paper cup can become a dangerous projectile.
Jennifer Pacheco, No Address Given. My problem is when you're going down the expressway, toward the Oceanfront, and you get off at Laskin Road and then you can either go to Laskin Road or Virginia Beach Boulevard - that part going to the Boulevard, there's this huge massive bump that you either have to drive around it or ruin your car going over it.
I was just wondering if they were going to fix it. Thank you.
RW: City engineers sent someone out to check out the bump and there must be one there because they called back saying it was on Virginia Department of Transportation property, which means yet another phone call to yet another agency to have them go out and check it. You can rest easy that Road will pursue the demise of this bump until the end.
Richard, Birdneck Village. I was wondering about the cameras along Route 44. Are they working and if so, do they seem to be pointing in directions other than the road?
Why is that? And since there is no more tollbooth will those cameras be relocated?
RW: The cameras are on and working. As far as where they seem to be pointing, don't let 'em fool you. Those cameras are set to have a bird's-eye view of the entire length of Route 44, I-64 and I-264 HOV-2 lanes.
And, no, the cameras will not be relocated just because the tollbooths are gone. The cameras are currently only used to monitor HOV-2 lanes, and there are still HOV lanes on Route 44, booth or not. MEMO: Tell the Road Warrior about your motoring problems. Get 'em off your
chest. Call on Infoline, at 640-5555. After a brief message, dial ROAD
(7623). When directed, press 1 to deliver your message, and 1 again to
sign off.
Or, write: The Road Warrior, Virginia Beach Beacon, 4565 Virginia
Beach Blvd., Virginia Beach, Va., 23462.
Don't forget to include your name, address and neighborhood.
by CNB